Hinako Shibuno (right), known as the “Smiling Cinderella,” has many fans – Getty Images/Oisin Keniry
On Thursday afternoon, during the first round of the Women's Open, a smartly dressed gentleman in a Burberry trench coat looked shell-shocked as he hurried onto the 18th fairway at the Old Course.
He was soon joined by a group of Japanese golf fans whose sorrows were fuelled by 2019 Women's Open champion Hinako Shibuno, who had a tough opening round, finishing eight over par.
Shibuno stunned the golf world five years ago when she won at Woburn at age 20. Her bubbly personality drew huge attention and earned her the nickname “Smiling Cinderella” in her home country. Even when she's not playing well, her trademark bob ponytail keeps fans following her, as well as hordes of Japanese photographers.
Domestically, Shibuno is a big star on par with 2021 Masters winner Hideki Matsuyama. That's in part because Shibuno is the first Japanese woman to win a major tournament since Hisako Higuchi won the U.S. Ladies PGA Championship in 1977. Since then, Japanese players have continued to win major tournaments. Last month, Ayaka Furue won the Evian Championship and Yuka Saso won her second U.S. Open.
Yuka Sasao holds the 2021 U.S. Open trophy – AP/Jed Jacobson
Japan appears to be dominating in the Women's Open, with 19 players from Japan, second only to the United States (25). Off the course, interest is also growing, with the championship featuring title sponsor AIG, as well as Japanese brands such as Mitsubishi, Nikon, Toyo Tire and Suntory as “patron” sponsors.
Telegraph Sports understands that the LPGA Tour's television audience in Japan often exceeds that of the PGA Tour, and the women's tour is broadcast on satellite channel WOWOW. The same is true in South Korea, where JTBC holds the broadcasting rights and the tournaments are given special glamour by K-pop groups. South Korea's Amy Yang won this year's PGA Championship.
Mina Park, from Seoul, and her friend Sakura were intently watching Japanese golfer Mao Saigo, who is rising through the ranks at the British Open, on Friday morning. The pair, who study in Los Angeles, were traveling to Europe to watch the women's Olympic golf tournament before heading to St. Andrews. “People might laugh, but the reason Korean female golfers are so good is because they go to a really rigorous boot camp, just like the K-pop stars in Korea. I guess that's what they call it here, but it's a really rigorous school and they expect perfection. It's part of our culture to be precise and perfect,” Park said.
Sakura added: “I've spent most of my life in the US and another reason Asian athletes are so successful is parental investment. Also, (New Zealand's) Lydia Ko comes from a Korean family and just won an Olympic gold medal. Some may think the 'Asian mom' or 'Tiger parent' stereotype is unhealthy, but they come from a very patriarchal society where golf is seen as a way for girls to shine.”
Currently, 10 of the world's top 20 players are from Asia. Asian immigrants also produce many of the stars of women's tennis, including the highest-ranked European player, Celine Boutier of France, ranked 8th in the world, and Boutier, who is the daughter of Thai parents. Ko, ranked 12th in the world, and Lilia Bu, the world No. 2 from California who won the Women's Open last year, are also of Asian descent.
France's world number eight, Celine Boutier, is the daughter of Thai parents – Getty Images/Ross Parker
In South Korea and Japan, the sport is driven by parental investment and a vast number of brands, including female-friendly brands like those in the skincare industry. In Thailand, it's a mix of sponsorship, strong interest from upper-class parents and big-name sponsors like Singha Beer pumping money into women's football. In China, state sponsorship is much more prevalent.
South Korean women have an advantage over their men because all men between the ages of 18 and 35 are required to serve in the military. Conscription can sideline male athletes for up to 21 months, and Kim Si-woo and Lim Seung-jae were only exempted after winning gold medals at the Asian Games, with Tom Kim still in the running to win gold.
Just as Tiger Woods inspired a generation of American male major winners, from Justin Spieth and Patrick Reed to Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele, Korean women have a role model, or “mentor,” in Pak Se-ri.
In 1998, Park became the first Korean woman to win a major tournament, and her courageous performance in a playoff at the U.S. Open made her Korea's equivalent of Bobby Moore hoisting the World Cup while stepping barefoot into a water hazard.
During Park's rookie season, there were just six players from Asia on the LPGA Tour. Last year, there were 69 players from Asia, more than 30 percent of the active players on the tour.
One theory as to why Asian women are so successful is that the discipline they are raised with is reflected in their golf game.
One of the often overlooked Asian influences on global golf is that of Kultida Woods on her son Tiger, who grew up in Thailand, but the podcast “All American: Tiger Woods” argues that her influence on her son in terms of discipline and drive is underappreciated.
As a St. Andrews fan reminded me, “Tiger is both African-American and Asian.”
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